North Atlantic Small State Security 2025: The West Nordic Security Zone

Abstract

As stated in the introduction of this volume, political shelter provides a framework for making recommendations about the relationship between small states and larger partners within an alliance (in this case the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)) as threats change. In the North Atlantic, a variety of threats, including strategic re-engagement between Russia and NATO, is occurring on a frenetic pace. At the same time, the near future of the region will undergo significant environmental modification that will open it to non-traditional players there, including rogue states (i.e. out of area), terrorists and criminals. This chapter makes a recommendation to utilize existing forces to answer sub-strategic threats by creating an additional command and control structure under NATO. Specifically, to meet hard security challenges created by the opening of the Trans-Arctic Route, NATO should create a sub-unified command in the region. Using the existing name Headquarters Joint Arctic Command, the new command’s responsibility would cover the portion of the North Atlantic herein termed the “West Nordic Security Zone” (WNSZ). HQ Joint Arctic Command would control ground and maritime forces from small states and autonomous areas in the North Atlantic, including a recommended newly constituted Icelandic security force.